Mechanism for wrapping cigar fillers



Dec. 20, 1966 w. PALLACH 3,292,637

MECHANISM FOR WRAPPING CIGAR FILLERS Filed 001;. 20, 1964 4 Sheets-Sheetl h-A i 21 13a 76a 63 F/gJ 50 23d 50b 20 22a 22 90 Inventor A/fl f H 1'Pa Tm-1 Dec. 20, 1966 w. PALLACH 3,292,637

MECHANISM FOR WRAPPING CIGAR FILLERS Filed Oct. 20, 1964 4 Sheets-Sheet2 Dec. 20, 1966 w. PALLACH 3,292,637

MECHANISM FOR WRAPPING CIGAR FILLERS Filed Oct. 20, 1964 4 Sheets-Sheet3 Inventor.-

Dec. 20, 1966 w. PALLACH 3,292,637

MECHANISM FOR WRAPPING CIGAR FILLERS Filed Oct. 20, 1964 4 Sheets-Sheet4 Inventor:

United States Patent 3,292,637 MECHANTSM FOR WRAPPING CIGAR FILLERSWalter Pallach, Hamburg-Bergedorf, Germany, assignor to Hauni-WerkeKorber & C0. K.G., Hamburg-Bergedorf, Germany Filed Oct. 20, 1964, Ser.No. 405,094 [Ilaims priority, application Germany, Nov. 9, 1963, H50,792 6 Claims. (Cl. 131-56) The present invention relates to cigarmachines in general, and more particularly to an improved mechanismwhich is utilized for wrapping raw cigar fillers or bunches. Still moreparticularly, the invention relates to an improved mechanism including arolling mold wherein cigar fillers or bunches of unit length or multipleunit length may be wrapped in leaves of tobacco or similar wrappermaterial.

It is known to provide a Wrapping mechanism for cigar fillers with apair of upper wrapping rolls and a pair of lower wrapping rolls whichdefine between themselves a filler-receiving nest wherein the fillerrotates by contact with the rolls to thereby convolute a wrapper aroundits periphery and to be transformed into a finished cigar. At the startof a wrapping operation, one end portion of the wrapper is insertedbetween the filler and one of the upper rolls so that the Wrapper isclamped and is automatically convoluted around the filler. As a rule,the upper Wrapping rolls are driven in response to engagement with thefiller, and the wrapping mechanism comprises suitable drive means forrotating the lower wrapping rolls. In other words, in order to rotatethe upper rolls, one must drive the lower rolls and one must also inserta filler into the rolling mold because the filler serves as a means fortransmitting motion to the upper rolls. A serious drawback of suchwrapping mechanisms is that the upper rolls will not always rotate atthe same peripheral speed as the lower rolls whereby the Wrapper islikely to be misaligned, overly stretched or otherwise deformed so thatthe ultimate product is a cigar of inferior quality as regards itsappearance and sales appeal.

It was already proposed to drive all four wrapping rolls at one or bothends of the rolling mold so that each upper roll will invariably rotateat a predetermined speed. However, such drive means are likely tointerfere with the wrapping operation, particularly with the wrapping ofleaves at the ends of a filler. If the filler is provided with one ortwo profiled end portions, such end portions must be Wrapped with utmostprecision and a cigar machine normally comprises special sockets whichinsure that the trailing end of each Wrapper is properly applied aroundthe profiled end portions of the filler. A positive drive for the upperrolls which is adjacent to the one or the other end of the rolling moldwould interfere with such application of wrappers to the end portions offillers. Also, and if the drive comprises spur gears or bevel gears,particles of tobacco are likely to penetrate between the meshing teethto affect the operation of the drive or to necessitate frequentdismantling for the purpose of cleaning. The situation is aggravatedwhen the filler is of double unit length and is provided With a profiledportion at each of its ends. In a wrapping mechanism for fillers withtwo profiled end portions, the sockets and other instrumentalities forapplying wrappers to the profiled end portions occupy so much space thatthere is little, if any, room for the provision of gears which wouldrotate the upper rolls.

Accordingly, it is an important object of the present invention toprovide an improved Wrapping mechanism for raw cigar fillers and toconstruct the rolling mold of the wrapping mechanism in such a way thatits ends are not obstructed by the drives which are utilized to rotate3,292,637 Patented Dec. 20, 1966 A further object of the invention is toassemble the drive for the upper wrapping rolls in such a way that itscomponent parts are readily accessible for the purpose of inspection,repair and/or replacement, and that such components are automaticallyheld in optimum position to drive the upper rolls at a predeterminedspeed.

An additional object of the invention is to provide a rolling mold ofthe above outlined characteristics which is particularly suited for theapplication of dual wrappers to cigar fillers of double unit length.

A concomitant object of the instant invention is to provide a novelmethod of driving the wrapping rolls in a rolling mold for raw cigarfillers.

Still another object of my invention is to provide a drive for the upperand lower wrapping rolls of a rolling mold and to assemble thecomponents of the drive in such a way that each such component may bekept out of alignment with the end portions of cigar fillers.

An additional object of the invention is to provide a drive of the justoutlined characteristics wherein the upper rolls need not be driventhrough the intermediary of the filler and wherein the upper rolls maybe driven by very simple, comparatively inexpensive and readilyinsertable or removable elements. i

A further object of the invention is to provide a drive of the aboveoutlined characteristics which is capable of rotating the upper andlower wrapping rolls at the same peripheral speed regardless of theexact diameter of an upper or lower roll.

Briefly stated, one feature of my invention resides in the provision ofa mechanism for applying wrappers or leaves to cigar fillers, preferablyfor applying pairs of mirror symmetrical wrappers to cigar fillers ofdouble unit length. The mechanism comprises a rolling mold include ingfixed support means, a pair of parallel lower wrapping rolls which arejournalled in the-support means, a pair of carrier means each of whichis mounted for rotation about the axis of one of the lower rolls, anupper Wrapping roll journalled in each of the carrier means so as to beparallel with the lower rolls, means for rocking the carrier meansbetween two angularly spaced positions in one of which the upper rollsare nearer to each other and 'define with the lower rolls afiller-receiving nest and in the other of which the upper rolls are moredistant from each other to permit insertion or removal of a filler fromthe mold, first drive means for rotating the lower rolls in the samedirection and at the same peripheral speed, and second drive means forrotating the'upper rolls in the same direction and at the sameperipheral speed as the lower rolls. In accordance with my invention,the second drive means comprises at least one friction wheel rotatablysupported by each of the carrier means and each such friction wheel ismaintained in simultaneous frictional engagement with the correspondingupper and lower rolls so that the upper rolls are driven in response torotation of the lower rolls. 7

In accordance with another important feature of my invention, thefriction wheels are preferably mounted on spring-biased holders ofvariable length which are pivotally secured to the respective carriermeans so that, on

shortening of the corresponding holder, each friction Wheel may be movedaway from the associated rolls and is then pivotable with reference tothe corresponding carrier means to be moved in an optimum position forinspection, cleaning or replacement. The upper and lower rolls arepreferably located in the space between the friction wheels.

The novel features which are considered as characteristic of theinvention are set forth in particular in the appended claims. Theimproved wrapping mechanism itself, however, both as to its constructionand its mode of operation, together with additional features andadvantages thereof, will be best understood upon perusal of thefollowing detailed description of a specific embodiment with referenceto the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a wrapping mechanism which embodiesmy invention,.certain parts of the mechanism being shown in section;

FIG. 2 is a smaller-scale top plan view of the wrapping mechanism withthe leaf transferring and leaf stretching devices omitted for the sakeof clarity;

FIG. 3 is a transverse vertical section as seen in the direction ofarrows from the line A-B of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary section as seen in the direction of arrows fromthe line IV-IV of FIG. 2 and shows one of the friction wheels and itsholder in two different angula-r positions;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary end elevational view of the wrapping mechanismand illustrates one of the leaf transferring and one of the leafstretching devices with a portion of the leaf transferring device brokenaway; and

FIGS. 6 to 11 illustrate diagrammatically various stages in thetreatment of a cigar filler of double unit length.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3, there is shown a'portion of a cigar machine,and more particularly a mechanism for wrapping pairs of speciallyconfigurated mirror symmetrical leaves or wrappers D around cigarfillers or bunches Z of double unit length or around cigar fillers ofunit length. The wrapping mechanism comprises a rolling mold composed ofsupport means including a base member 1 and two upstanding bearingbrackets 2, 3 secured to'the base member. The brackets 2, 3 support twoparallel rotary shafts 4, 4a forming part of a pair of lower Wrapping orconvoluting rolls 5, 6. Each lower roll further comprises a series ofcoaxial sleeves 7, 7a, 7a, 8, 8a, 9 and 9a which are non-rotatablysecured to the respective shaft 4 or 4a. The sleeve 7 is locatedcentrally of the corresponding shaft 4 or 4a and is flanked by sleeves7a, 7a.

The sleeves 7a, 7a are flanked by sleeves 8a, 9a, and the sleeves 8a, 9aare flanked by sleeves 8, 9.

The drive means for the lower rolls 5, 6 comprises a driver gear 10which is mounted in the bearing bracket 2 and meshes with two pinions11, 12 which are coaxially secured to the shafts 4a and 4. These shaftsare journalled in the brackets 2, 3 and will rotate in the samedirection and at the same speed as soon as the gear 10 is driven by themain drive (not shown) of the cigar machine. The bracket 2 protects thegear 10 and pinions 11, 12 against contamination by tobacco particles orother foreign matter. I V

The rolling mold of the wrapping mechanism shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 furthercomprises a pair of upper wrapping or convoluting rolls 20, 21 which areparallel with the lower rolls 5, 6 and normally define therewith afillerreceiving nest N. In FIGS. 1 to 4, the nest N accommodates a cigarfiller Z.

The means for supporting and driving the upper rolls 20, 21 comprisestwo mirror symmetrical pairs of rotary carriers 13 and 14. The carriers13 are rotatable about the axis of the shaft 4a, and the carriers 14 mayrotate about the axis of the shaft 4. As best shown in FIG. 1, theleft-hand carrier 13 is mounted on the shaft 4a between one of thesleeves 7a and the sleeve 8a, and the right-hand carrier 13 is mountedon the shaft 4a between the other sleeve 7a and the sleeve 9a. Thecarriers 14 are mounted insimilar fashion to rotate between the sleeves7a, 8a and 7a, 9a on the shaft 4. The free ends of the carriers 13, 14are respectively provided with clamping eyes 15a, 15 which engage endportions of horizontal shafts 16a, 16. The shafts 16, 16a are parallelwith the shafts 4, 4a and are rigidly fixed to outwardly extendinglevers 17, these levers being articulately conupper rolls 20, 21 aremore distant from each other so as i to allow for insertion or ejectionof a cigar filler Z or a cigar Z from the rolling mold.

The shafts 19, 19a of the upper rolls 21, 20 are journalled in thecarriers 13, 14 at a level above the lower shafts 4, 4a, and each upperroll further comprises a series of elongated sleeves which arenon-rotatably fixed to the corresponding shafts 19, 19a. The shafts 19,19a are free to rotate in the corresponding pairs of carriers. The

sleeves on the shaft 19a include a centrally located sleeve 22 and twoouter sleeves 23, 24. The sleeves on the shaft 19 include a centrallylocated sleeve 22a and two outer sleeves 23a, 24a.

The upper rolls 20, 21 are driven by four pairs of friction wheels whichare supported by the carriers 13, 14 and are respectively driven by thelower rolls 6 and 5. Each carrier 13 supports a holder 58, 59, and theseholders respectively comprise clamping members 62, 63 which engage theshaft 16a, i.e., the holders'58, 59 are rotatable about the shaft 16a.The carriers 14 respectively support two holders 60, 61 having clampingmembers 65, 64 which engage the shaft 16. The holder 58 comprises anouter. tubular. portion 58b (see particularly FIG. 4), an inner tubularportion 58a which is telescoped into the outer tubular portion 58b, ashaft 500 whose central portion is journalled in the free end of theinner portion 58:: and

whose end portions extend beyond the inner portion 58a, and a resilientelement in the formof a prestressed helical l spring 54 which -isinserted into the tubular portions 580, 58b and tends to move the innerportion 58:: toward the nest N. The end portions of the shaft 50csupport two I coaxial friction wheels 50a, 50b which bear against the.

sleeve 23a of the upper roll 20 as well as against the sleeves 8, 8a ofthe lower roll 6. Thus, when the lower roll 6 is driven by the pinion11, the upper 101120 is driven by the friction wheels 50a, 50b to rotatein the same direction and at the same peripheral speed as the roll 6.The holder 59 is of the same construction as the holder 58 and comprisesa shaft 510 whose end portions carry two coaxial friction wheels 51a,51b engaging the sleeve 24a of the upper roll 20 and the sleeves 9a, fthe lower roll 6. Thus, the friction wheels 50a, 50b and 51a, 51brespectively drive the opposite ends of the upper roll 20.

The third holder 60 comprises a shaft 53c whose end.

coaxial friction wheels 52a, 52b which engage the sleeve 24 of the upperroll 21 and the sleeves-9a, 9 of the lower roll 5. It will be noted thatthe rolls 5, 6, 20 and 21 are located in the space between the frictionwheels 50a, 50b,

51a, 51b and 52a, 52b, 53a, 53b, and that the axes of the frictionwheels are parallel with the axes of the shafts 4, 4a, 19, 19a.

When the operator desires to gain access to friction rolls 50a, 50b, hepushes the inner portion 58a of the holder 58 against the bias of'thespring 54 so that the holder 58 is shortened and may be pivoted aboutthe axis of the shaft 16a to the broken-line position 58 of FIG. 4. Insuch position of the holder 58, the friction wheels 50a, 50b are readilyaccessible to the operator for the purpose of inspection, cleaning orreplacement by fresh friction wheels. It is to be noted that the lengthof the holder 58 may be reduced sufliciently to enable the frictionwheels 50a, 50b to bypass at least the upper roll 20; however,

and if desired, the length of the holder 58 may be reduced to such anextent that the friction wheels 50a, 50b will bypass the roll and/or 6.

It is clear that each of the holders 59, 60, 61 also comprises twotelescopically connected tubular portions (corresponding to the portions58a, 58b) and a helical spring (corresponding to the spring 54) so thatthe length of each holder may be reduced at the will of the operator inorder to move the corresponding pair of friction wheels out ofengagement with the associated upper and lower rolls.

It will be noted that all of the rolls 5, 6, 20*, 21 are driven in thesame direction and at the same peripheral speed. The diameters of thepinions 11, 12 are identical, the diameters of :all friction wheels areidentical, the diameters of both lower rolls are identical, and thediameters of both upper rolls are also identical. This is of advantagein the event that one of these parts must be replaced by a fresh part.

The cigar filler Z is of double unit length and is provided withprofiled (rounded or conical) end portions, see FIG. 1. Once the fillerZ is wrapped in a pair of mirror symmetrical leaves D, it is subdividedinto :a pair of cigars each of which comprises a single profiled endportion. As shown in FIG. 1, the profiled end portions of the filler Zare received in stationary thimbling sockets 25, 26 which arerespectively provided on the brackets 2 and 3. The configuration of thesockets 25, 26 may be similar to that of the head mold disclosed in myU.S. Patent No. 3,116,- 740. When a filler Z is properly received in thenest N between the pairs of rolls 5, 6 and 20, 21, its end portionsproject into the sockets 25, 26. Thus, the wrapping action of rolls 5,6, 20, 21 is not effective at the profiled end portions of the filler,and the sockets 25, 26 serve the purpose of insuring that the trailingends of the wrappers D are properly convoluted around the respective endportions.

The wrapping mechanism of my invention further comprises an ejectordevice including a series of vertical or nearly vertical lifting members28, 29, 30, 31 having stems which extend between the lower rolls 5, 6and bifurcated upper end portions whose prongs 33-, 34 maybe retractedinto registering gaps 32 between the sleeves of the lower rolls. Forexample, and as shown in FIG. 3, the prongs of the lifting members 30may be withdrawn into the gaps 32 between the sleeves 7, 7a of the lowerrolls 5, 6. The lifting members 2831 are reciprocab'le by a horizontalbar 27 which is operated in synchronism with the cigar machine to liftthe prongs 33, 34 of all members 28-31 when the upper rolls 20, 21 aremoved to the position of FIG. 6 so that a freshly wrapped cigar Z may beexpelled from the rolling mold. The bar 27 is reciprocabvle by a lever35 shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, and this lever is reciprocated by a suitabletransmission of the cigar machine.

FIGS. 3 and 5 show plate-like stretching devices 36 which serve tosubject the wrappers D to requisite tension at the time the rolls 5, 6,20, 21 rotate to convolute the wrappers around a filler Z in the nest N.The stretching devices 36 cooperate with a pair of leaf transformingarms 37 one of which is shown in FIG. 5. The arms 37 comprise suctionheads 37a which serve to pick up wrappers or leaves D from a pair oftrimming stations (not shown) and to transfer such leaves to the rollingmold. The manner in which a pair of suction heads 37a may transferwrappers to the wrapping station is disclosed in the copendingapplication Serial No. 113,312 of Pallach and Thiele, filed May 29,1961, and now abandoned.

Referring to FIG. 5, each suction head 37a accommodates a pivotabledeflector 38 which may be retracted into a recess 39 at the underside ofthe respective suction head. The deflector 38 is rpivotable about ahorizontal pin 40 which is parallel with the rolls 5, 6, 20, 21 when thecorresponding arm 37 is moved to the position of FIG. 5 and is ready toapply one end portion of the wrapper D to the central portion of thefiller Z. The deflector 38 is rigid with an upwardly extending trippinglever 41 which carries a pin 42 received in an open slot 45 provided inthe lower leg 44 of a bell crank lever 43. This lever 43 is rockablysupported by a pin 460 received in a lug 46 on the corresponding suctionhead 37a, and its other leg 47 is located in the path of a reciprocableactuating rod 48 which is operated in synchronism with the cigar machineto expel the deflector 38 from the recess 39 against the bias of areturn spring 49 which acts on the leg 44 and tends to maintain thedeflector in the recess 39. If the rod 48 is caused to move upwardly, asviewed in FIG. 5, the lever 43 will be rocked in a counterclockwisedirection and the deflector 38 will be expelled from the recess 39 toflex the corresponding end portion of the wrapper D around the centralportion of the filler Z in the nest N.

The operation of the wrapping mechanism will be described with referenceto FIGS. 6 to 11.

The main drive of the cigar machine rotates the gear 10 which drives thepinions 11, 12 so that the lower rollers 5, 6 are rotated at apredetermined speed and in the same direction, i.e., in acounterclockwise direction, as viewed in FIG. 6. The friction wheels arein engagement with the corresponding lower and upper rolls so that theroll 5 drives the roll 21 and the roll 6 drives the roll 20 whereby therolls 20, 21 rotate in the same direction as the rolls 5, 6.

Prior to the start of a wrapping operation, the transmission of thecigar machine pulls the rocking levers 18 downwardly so that thecarriers 13, 14 rotate about the axes of the shafts 4a, 4 and move theupper rolls 20, 21 away from each other (see FIG. 6). The transfer arms37 are moved away from the rolling mold so that the nest N is exposedand the previously wrapped filler, form ing a cigar Z is ready to beexpelled from the rolling mold. Such expulsion is effected by thelifting members 28-31 which are moved upwardly in response to upwardmovement of the lever 35 whereby the cigar Z is lifted to the positionshown in FIG. 6 and may be engaged by suitable gripping members (notshown) of the type disclosed in the aforementioned copending applicationSerial No. 113,312. The gripping members transfer the cigar Z onto atake-off conveyor which will advance the cigars to a further processingstation, for example, to a station where the cigars are halved to yieldpairs of cigars each having a-profiled mouthpiece at one of its ends.During such expulsion of a cigar Z the upper rolls 2!), 21 continue torotate because the carriers 13, 14 which support the upper rolls and thefriction wheels are rockable about the axes of the respective lowerrolls, i.e., each friction wheel remains in simultaneous frictionalengagement with the corresponding upper and lower rolls.

Before the lifting members 2831 descend, the gripping members deposit araw cigar filler Z into the pronged end portions of such lifting membersso that, while descending to the positions shown in FIG. 9, 10 or 11,the lifting members will gently lower the raw filler into the rollingmold and onto the lower rolls 5, 6. However, before the lifting membersdescend, the transfer arms 37 will deliver a pair of wrappers D and therods 48 will move upwardly (see FIG. 5) to trip the deflectors 38whereby the deflectors fold the adjoining end portions of the wrappers Daround the median portion of the lifted filler Z. This step is shown inFIG. 7. The upper rolls 20, 21 are still located at a greater thannormal distance from each other, i.e., the rolling mold is open. Asshown in FIG. 8, the rocking levers 18 are then caused to move upwardlyin order to rock the carriers 13, 14 whereby the rolls 20, 21 movetoward each other and the roll 20 engages the deflected end portions ofthe wrappers D, see FIG. 8. In such position of the upper rolls, thebars 48 may be retracted downwardly, as viewed in FIG. 5, because thewrappers D are now held between the filler Z and the upper roll 20 andare automatically convoluted around the filler because the rolls 5, 6,20 and 21 rotate in a counterclockwise direction. The lifting members28-31 are retracted downwardly (see FIG. 9) so that the filler Z comesto rest on the peripheries of the lower rolls 5, 6. The stretchingdevices 36 cooperate with the suction heads 37a to maintain the wrappersD under tension (see FIGS. 10 and 11) while the wrappers are beingconvoluted around the filler Z in a fully automatic way. The means forpressing the stretching devices 36 against the undersides of therespective heads 37a are not illustrated in the'drawings. Duringwrapping, the heads move in directions indicated by the arrows 37b, seeFIGS. 10 and 11.

Once the wrapping operation is completed, i.e., once the trailing endsof the wrappers D are fully convoluted around the profiled end portionswhich are accommodated in the sockets 25, 26, the rocking levers 18 aremoved downwardly to open the rolling mold by moving the upper rolls 20,21 away from each other and back to the positions shown in FIG. 6. Thelever 35 then lifts the members28-31 through the intermediary of the bar27 and'the freshly wrapped cigar Z of double unit length is ready to beremoved from the mold. The same operation is then repeated with a freshfiller Z.

.Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gistof the present invention that others can, by applying current knowledge,readily adapt it for various applications without omitting featureswhich fairly constitute essential characteristics of the generic andspecific aspects of this invention, and, therefore, such adaptationsshould and are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and rangeof equivalence of the following claims.

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. A mechanism for applying wrappers to cigar fillers, comprising arolling mold including fixed support means, a pair of parallel lowerrolls journalled in said support means, a pair of carrier means eachmounted for rotation about the axis of one of said lower rolls, an upperroll journalled in each of said carrier means, said upper rolls beingparallel with said lower rolls, means for rocking said carrier meansbetween two angularly spaced positions in one of which said upper rollsare nearer to each other to define with said lower rolls afiller-receiving nest and in the other of which said upper rolls aremore distant from each other. to permit insertion or removal of a fillerfrom said mold; first drive means for rotating said lower rolls in thesame direction and at the same peripheral speed; and second drive meansfor rotat ing said upper rolls in the same direction and at the sameperipheral speed as said lower rolls, said second drive means comprisingat least one holder provided on each of said carrier means andcomprising a first portion secured to the corresponding carrier meansand a second portion, at least one friction wheel rotatably mounted onthe second portion of each holder, and resilient means wherein the firstportion of each .holder is pivotably secured to the correspondingcarrier means so that, on movement of said second portions in adirection away from said nest to disengage the friction wheels from thecorresponding rolls, said holders may be pivoted with reference to thecarrier means to facilitate access to said friction wheels.

3. A mechanism as set forth in claim 2, wherein said first and secondportions of each holder consist of tubes which are telescoped in eachother and said resilient means comprises helical springs provided insaid tubes to bias the tubes away from each other.

4. A mechanism as set forth in claim 2, wherein said second portion ofeach holder is movable against the bias of the corresponding resilientmeans through a dis tance which sufiices to allow for pivotal movementof the respective friction wheel past at least one of the correspondingrolls.

- 5. A mechanism as set forth in claim 2, wherein said second drivemeans further comprises a shaft having a median portion supported by thesecond portion of each holder. in parallelism with said rolls and twoend portions extending beyond, the respective second end portion, therebeing one friction wheel mounted on each end portion of each of saidshafts.

6. A mechanism as set forth in claim 2, wherein said first drive meanscomprises a gear rotatably mounted in said support means and a pair ofpinions meshing with said gear, each of said pinions being coaxiallysecured to one of said lower rolls.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 752,733 2/1904Wartmann 131-56 X 1,134,246 4/1915 Tyberg.

1,915,277 6/1933 Halstead 131-29 2,006,113 6/1935 Rober 13156 FOREIGNPATENTS 98,756 8/ 1898 Germany. 602,577 9/1934 Germany.

OTHER REFERENCES VEB, German App. No. 1,119,744, Pub. 12/14/61, Class131-56. 7 I

SAMUEL KOREN, Primary Examiner.

H. P. DEELEY, Assistant Examiner.

1. A MECHANISM FOR APPLYING WRAPPERS TO CIGAR FILLERS, COMPRISING AROLLING MOLD INCLUDING FIXED SUPPORT MEANS, A PAIR OF PARALLEL LOWERROLLS JOURNALLED IN SAID SUPPORT MEANS, A PAIR OF CARRIER MEANS EACHMOUNTED FOR ROTATION ABOUT THE AXIS OF ONE OF SAID LOWER ROLLS, AN UPPERROLL JOURNALLED IN EACH OF SAID CARRIER MEANS, SAID UPPER ROLLS BEINGPARALLEL WITH SAID LOWER ROLLS, MEANS FOR ROCKING SAID CARRIER MEANSBETWEEN TWO ANGULARLY SPACED POSITIONS IN ONE OF WHICH SAID UPPER ROLLSARE NEARER TO EACH OTHER TO DEFINE WITH SAID LOWER ROLLS AFILLER-RECEIVING NEST AND IN THE OTHER OF WHICH SAID UPPER ROLLS AREMORE DISTANT FROM EACH OTHER TO PERMIT INSERTION OR REMOVAL OF A FILTERFROM SAID MOLD; FIRST DRIVE MEANS FOR ROTATING SAID LOWER ROLLS IN THESAME DIRECTION AND AT THE SAME PERIPHERAL SPEED; AND SECOND DRIVE MEANSFOR ROTATING SAID UPPER ROLLS IN THE SAME DIRECTION AND AT THE SAME